Wills, Trusts, & Estate Planning, Finance & Banking

BVI Trusts: Private Trust Companies

by Harney Westwood & Riegels on 5/24/2013

INTRODUCTION - Since 2007, it has been possible in BVI to establish a Private Trust Company (“PTC”) which may act as trustee of trusts without the need to obtain a BVI trust licence as long as certain conditions are...more

A Not-So-Good Domestic Asset Protection Trust Case

by Charles (Chuck) Rubin on 5/24/2013

Several states have adopted asset protection trust statutes that allow a grantor to establish a trust that is protected from the grantor’s creditors, even though the grantor is a discretionary beneficiary....more

BVI Trusts: VISTA Trusts

by Harney Westwood & Riegels on 5/23/2013

INTRODUCTION The Virgin Islands Special Trusts Act (“VISTA”) came into force on 1 March 2004 and was introduced in order to allow a shareholder to establish a BVI trust over a BVI company which disengages the trustee from...more

The Gwartz Decision: The GAAR Is Not A Filler

by Jehad Haymour | Dentons on 5/23/2013

In Brianne Gwartz v. The Queen, 2013 TCC 86, the Crown attempted to utilize the GAAR to recharacterize as dividends certain capital gains which had been realized by a family trust and allocated to the minor-aged taxpayers in...more

New amendments keep BVI trusts at cutting edge

by Henry Mander | Harney Westwood & Riegels on 5/23/2013

The British Virgin Islands is a well respected and sophisticated jurisdiction for the establishment of trusts. The general principles of BVI trust law are derived from those of English law and they have been supplemented by...more

BVI Trusts: An Overview

by Harney Westwood & Riegels on 5/22/2013

INTRODUCTION - A trust is a legal relationship created when a person (the settlor) places assets under the control of another person (the trustee) for the benefit of beneficiaries or a specific purpose. The trustee is...more

New York State Court Allows Trustee Lawsuit Against DB Structured Products to Proceed

by Orrick - Structured Finance Group on 5/20/2013

On May 13, Justice Kornreich of the Supreme Court of the State of New York denied DB Structured Products, Inc.’s (DBSP) motion to dismiss an RMBS putback action brought against it by the trustee for the relevant RMBS trust. ...more

Changes to BVI Trust Legislation – Fine-tuning the Law to Promote Flexibility

by Margarita Hadjitofi, Henry Mander, Emily Yiolitis | Harney Westwood & Riegels on 5/20/2013

The British Virgin Islands is a well respected and sophisticated jurisdiction for the establishment of trusts. The general principles of BVI trust law are derived from those of English law and they have been supplemented by...more

The Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act’s Tax on Net Investment Income

by William McNairy, Sara Vizithum, Sue Young | Brooks Pierce on 5/20/2013

One of the provisions included in the health care reform legislation enacted in 2010 will subject certain individuals to a 3.8% tax on net investment income (or "unearned income"). The new law is effective in 2013 and imposes...more

FBAR Penalties and Estate Administration

by Sanford Millar on 5/20/2013

The death or disability of a taxpayer who has failed to timely file a Report of Foreign Bank or Financial Account (FBAR) can present difficult problems for fiduciaries like trustees, estate executors and conservators. The...more

IRS Releases "Dirty Dozen" Tax Scams for 2013

by Ronald Adams on 5/16/2013

Some of this year's top scams are directed at innocent taxpayers, while others are committed by taxpayers in a futile and costly attempt to avoid taxes. For each of the last several years, the Internal Revenue Service has...more

Tax Changes Loom in the President’s 2014 Budget Proposal

by Les Williams | Niles, Barton & Wilmer, LLP on 5/15/2013

The White House recently released its Fiscal Year 2014 budget proposal, and there are many suggested changes that will impact individuals, businesses, and estates. Several of these proposals—particularly on the estate and...more

Obama Revenue Raising Proposals

by Vance E. Antonacci | McNees Wallace & Nurick LLC on 5/13/2013

The Obama Administration recently released its budget proposal for the federal government’s upcoming fiscal year of October 1, 2013 to September 30, 2014. The budget proposal contains a variety of changes to the tax laws...more

IRS Announces Information Sharing Agreement With Australia And The UK To Combat Tax Evasion

by David Gair | Looper Reed & McGraw, P.C. on 5/13/2013

The IRS continues to aggressively pursue offshore tax evasion. Another example of which is plan to share tax information with Australia and the United Kingdom....more

SEC Settles Suit for Misleading Advisory Contract Approval Disclosure

by David Freese, Sean Graber, Daniel Levin, Richard F. Morris, John O'Brien, Zachary E. Vonnegut-Gabovitch | Morgan Lewis on 5/10/2013

Settlement with mutual fund directors and service providers serves as a reminder of responsibilities for disclosures relating to the approval of investment advisory contracts and provides insight into SEC enforcement...more

Tales from the Crypt -- Post-Mortem Planning Using Private Placement Insurance Products

by Gerald Nowotny on 5/9/2013

Overview - This article discusses the use of private placement products - private placement deferred variable annuities (PPVA) and private placement life insurance (PPLI)- in post mortem income tax and transfer tax...more

Mcnees Insights - Asset Planning and Federal Taxation - Spring 2013

by Vance E. Antonacci, Scott Alan Mitchell | McNees Wallace & Nurick LLC on 5/8/2013

In This Issue: ATRA 2012 – How Does it Affect You?; Planning and Paying for Long-Term Care; and Obama Revenue Raising Proposals. Excerpt from ATRA 2012 – How Does it Affect You?: The American Taxpayer...more

SEC Settles with Service Providers and Trustees of two Mutual Fund Trusts for Inaccurate Disclosures Regarding Section 15(c)...

by Ropes & Gray LLP on 5/7/2013

On May 2, 2013, the SEC filed an order instituting settled administrative proceedings against the trustees (“Trustees”) and certain service providers of two “turnkey” open-end series investment companies, Northern Lights Fund...more